Method of finishing a garment edge



y 4, 1961 J. NELSON 2,990,554

METHOD OF FINISHING A GARMENT EDGE Filed Jan. 21, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 1INVENTOR.

JACK NE LSON A TTORNEY July 4, 1961 J. NELSON METHOD OF FINISHING AGARMENT EDGE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 21. 1959 REVERSE R m5 mL WE N KC A w J Y TTOBNEY y 1961 J. NELSON 2,990,554

METHOD OF FINISHINGAGARMENT EDGE Filed Jan. 21. 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 3INVENTOR.

JACK NELSON TTOKIVEY United States Patent 2,990,554 METHOD OF FINISHINGA GARMENT EDGE Jack Nelson, 2700 Heath Ave, New York, NY.

Filed Jan. 21, 1959, Ser. No. 788,192 3 Claims. (Cl. 2-274) Thisinvention relates to a method of finishing the edges of articles ofclothing, particularly womens suits and jackets.

In the manufacture and tailoring of womens suits and jackets, it hasbeen found particularly desirable to form the jacket without theapplication of the usual facing material in the region of the lapels.However, with the elimination of the facing material, problems havedeveloped with relation to the finishing of the side edges of thegarment. It has been found difficult to achieve a suitably finished edgewherein the raw edges of the cloth do not show and wherein the finishededges are not unduly bulky. Furthermore, it has been found that thetendency of the single fabric layer to distort and stretch makes itdifiicult to achieve a garment presenting the desired qualities of fit,appearance and shape retention.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a method forfinishing the edges of a garment of the character indicated whereinthere is presented a highly finished edge structure from which theappearance of the raw edge of the cloth is completely eliminated andwherein the tendency of the cloth to distort, stretch, or otherwise loseitsshape, is eliminated.

In order to accomplish these and other purposes, a method is providedfor the incorporation of a binding tape along the raw edges of thecloth, which is then turned, trimmed, folded and stitched in order topresent a" highly finished appearance for the garment and provide anedge reinforcement therefor whereby the desired 'qualities of fit,appearance and shape retention are achieved. Furthermore, a method isprovided to impart 'a finished appearance to the apex portion ofthe'lapel notch by the application of a gusset of the garment materialthereto.-

These and other objects, benefits and advantages of this invention willbecome apparent from the description thereof contained in the annexedspecification or will otherwise become obvious. It will be understoodthat the invention here disclosed may be employed for other purposes towhich the structure and arrangement are adapted.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary elevational view of a garment lapel at aninitial stage of its formation;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary elevational view of a garment lapel after theinitial application of the tape binding material thereto;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of the lapel shown in FIGURE2 after the edge thereof has been turned, showing the reverse surface ofthe lapel;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view of the lapel shown in FIGURE 3 at a laterstage and after excess portions of the binding tape have have beentrimmed away;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary View of a lapel point as it appears prior tobeing clipped;

FIGURE 6 is an elevational view of the lapel shown in FIGURE 3 at alater stage, wherein the edge of the lapel has again been folded over inorder to complete the finish of the lapel edge;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary elevational view of the lapel as it appears incompleted form having been folded into position along the roll line ofthe lapel;

FIGURE 8 is a cross-section of FIGURE 2 taken along line 8-8 thereof,showing the manner in which the binding tape is stitched to the gusset;

2,990,554 Patented July 4, 1961 FIGURE 9 is a sectional view of the edgeof the lower portion of the lapel showing the reversal of the tape atthe lower end of the roll line of the lapel as it is applied to thelower portion of the jacket;

FIGURE 10 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the lapel takenalong line 10-10 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 11 is a cross-section of the finished edge of the lapel takenalong line 11-=11 of FIGURE 6*;

FIGURE 12 is a fragmentary elevational view showing the manner in whicha two-piece lapel is formed;

FIGURE 13 is a fragmentary elevational view of the lapel shown in FIGURE12 after it has been folded into position along the roll line thereof;and

FIGURE 14 is a cross-section showing the manner in which the twosections of the collar and lapel shown in FIGURE 12 are joined, saidsection being taken along line 1414 of FIGURE 12.

The method of finishing a lapel in accordance with the present inventionwill now be more fully described.

FIGURE 1 illustrates a fragment of a lapel blank which has been cut fromthe fabric of which the garment is to be formed and is designatedgenerally by the numeral 20. The fabric is cut to the generalconfiguration of the lapel to be formed and a notch 21 of the desireddimensions is provided in the blank. A notched gusset 22 of the samefabric as the garment is applied in the region of the apex portion 23 ofthe notch 21 as by means of a line of stitching 24. The purpose of thegusset is ultimately to provide a finished appearance for the apexportion of the notch as will more clearly appear hereafter. As may beseen in FIGURE 2, a strip of binding tape 27 is dis posed flat inface-toface relation with the fabric along the raw edge 25 thereof andsecured in position by means of a line of stitching 26. It will be notedthat the tape 27 is aligned with the lapel edge and is stitched to theundersurface of the gusset 22. In stitching the tape to the undersurfaceof the gusset, the tape is folded upon itself, as may be more clearlyseen in FIGURE 8, so that the free edge 28 thereof extends away from theperimeter of the gusset. It will be further noted that at the lower end29 of the roll line 30 of the lapel the tape 27 is slashed, as shown at31, and then applied along the edge of [the reverse side B of the lapelfabric 20 along the lower edge of the jacket. This reversal is necessaryin order to maintain the finished appearance along the lower edge of thejacket when worn.

The tape is then turned to the reverse side B of the body of the lapeland is stitched in position by a line of stitching 32, as shown inFIGURES 3 and 10, so that the stitched edges of the fabric and tape areencased. The excess portion 33 of the free edge of the tape 27 is thentrimmed away. It should be noted that in turning over the taped gussetof the notch, the position of the gusset is reversed and brought aroundto the reverse surface B of the fabric, thereby presenting a continuoussurface along both sides of the lapel and the edge of the apex portionof the notch. FIGURE 4 illustrates the appearance of the lapel edgeafter the excess tape has been trimmed away.

In preparation for the next step in finishing the lapel, each of thecorners 34 and 34a is folded upon itself and a line of diagonalstitching 40 is applied across the corner as shown in FIGURE 5 and thecorners are then clipped. The turned edge of the lapel is then foldedover upon itself as shown in FIGURES 6 and 11 and a line of stitching 35is applied therealong so as to secure the folded-over edge in position.The clipped corners 34 and 34a permit the formation of sharp cornerswhen this folding-over operation is carried out. It will be notedparticularly from FIGURE 11 that when the tape reinforced edge of thelapel is folded upon itself and stitched in position, only the bightportions 36 and 37 are exposed toward the inside of the lapel and agenerally fiat bight 41 is formed along the outside edge thereof.Consequently, the edge of the lapel presents a highly finishedappearance in which only the material of the garment is exposed to view.The edge is not only finished off with an aesthetically pleasingappearance but it is also reinforced by means of the folded tape whichis practically invisible as well as by the fabric fold.

FIGURES 12 and 13 illustrate a garment lapel formed of two piecescommonly known as a set-in collar. The edge of the lapel and collar areformed in the manner herein described, with the exception that since thecollar 38 is formed independently of the lapel body 39, it is notnecessary to apply a gusset to form a finished lapel notch. The collarand lapel portions of the garment are united to each other by a line ofstitching 41, as indicated in FIGURE 14.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that by forming a lapel in themanner herein indicated, the necessity for using a facing material isobviated. Furthermore, a highly finished edge is provided for thegarment which is reinforced against distortion or stretch by means of adouble fold formed by the garment material and the reinforcing tape.

The product comprises a garment or a lapel portion therefor wherein theraw edge of the fabric has been turned in. The bight formed by theturning of the edge is disposed so that it is directed inwardly of thefabric body. Intermediate said inturned fabric edge and the fabric bodythere is disposed a binding tape which is folded over upon itself andpresents a bight directed inwardly of the fabric body. The fabric bodyis itself folded over the entire assembly and forms a bight whichencompasses the raw edge and the tape edges and forms the marginal edgefor the garment or lapel.

While I have here shown and described a preferred embodiment of myinvention, it will be apparent however that this invention is notlimited to this embodiment and that many changes, additions andmodifications can be made in connection therewith without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention as herein disclosed andhereinafter claimed. Having described my invention what I claim as newand desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The method of forming a finished edge on the fabric body of a garmentcomprising the steps of securing a binding tape fiat along the raw edgeof said fabric body, turning said taped raw edge to the reverse side ofsaid fabric body, folding the tape back upon itself toward the fabricbody, securing said turned tape and edge in position, folding over saidturned edge upon itself and securing said folded-over portion to saidfabric body to thereby provide a finished edge for said garment.

2. The method of forming a finished edge for a garment body comprisingthe steps of stitching a binding tape along the raw edge of the fabricbody in face-to-face relation therewith, turning said taped raw edge tothe reverse side of said fabric body folding the tape back upon itselftoward the fabric body and stitching said turned taped edge to saidfabric body, folding over said stitched turned edge upon itself andstitching said folded-over portion to said fabric body to therebyprovide a finished edge for said garment.

3. The method of forming a finished edge for a garment body comprisingthe steps of stitching a binding tape along the raw edge of the fabricbody in face-toface relation therewith, turning said taped raw edge tothe reverse side of said fabric body, folding the tape back upon itselftoward the fabric body and stitching said turned taped edge to saidfabric body, trimming the free edge of said tape to remove the excesstherefrom, folding over said stitched turned edge upon itself andstitching said folded-over portion to said fabric body to therebyprovide a finished edge for said garment.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS289,604 Beiermeister Dec. 4, 1883 1,534,563 Barker Apr. 21, 19251,862,377 Harper June 7, 1932 2,182,911 Bowman Dec. 12, 1939 2,448,495Muecke Aug. 31, 1948 2,515,038 Harper July 11, 1950 2,685,089 Rand etal. Aug. 3, 1954

